STATUTORY RULES.
1923. No. 206.
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REGULATIONS
UNDER THE ADVANCES TO SETTLERS ACT 1923.
I, THE GOVERNOR‑GENERAL in and
over the Commonwealth of Australia, with the advice of the Federal Executive
Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Advances to
Settlers Act 1923, to come into operation forthwith.
Dated this fourteenth day of December, 1923.
FORSTER,
Governor‑General.
By His Excellency’s Command,
Ll. ATKINSON,
for Minister
of State for Trade and Customs.
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ADVANCES TO
SETTLERS REGULATIONS.
Part I.—Preliminary.
Short title.
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Advances to Settlers Regulations.
Parts.
2. These Regulations are divided in Parts as follows:—
Part I —Preliminary.
PartII—Advances
in States.
Part III—Advances in the Northern Territory.
Definition.
3. In these Regulations, unless the contrary intention
appears— “the Act” means the Advances to Settlers Act 1923.
Part II.—Advances in States.
Definition.
4. In this Part, unless the contrary intention appears—
“the Minister” means the Minister of
State for Trade and Customs;
“the State Minister” when used in relation to wire netting to he used in
any State, means the Minister of that State who controls Crown lands.
Delegation.
5. (1) Where, in any State, there is a
body constituted by or under any law of that State for the purpose of
controlling Crown lands or the distribution to settlers of wire netting, the
State Minister may by writing under his hand delegate all or any of his powers
or functions under this Part (except this power of delegation) so that the
delegated powers or functions may be exercised as fully and effectually by the
delegate as by the State Minister.
(2) Any delegation made under this regulation shall be
notified to the Minister and shall be revocable at will and shall not prevent
the exercise of any power or function by the State Minister.
C.17767.—Price 3d.
Application for wire netting.
6. Any settler who desires to be supplied under the Act
with wire netting may make an application therefor to the State Minister.
Particulars of applications.
7. (1) Each application under this Part shall state the
full name and address of the applicant, the quantity, mesh, gauge, and width of
the wire netting required, the proposed terms of payment and, where payment is
not to be made in cash, the security offered for payment, and full particulars
of the assistance (if any) already received by the applicant from the State
Government in connexion with the purchase or supply of wire netting.
(2) No application shall be granted
unless the applicant undertakes to pay for the wire netting applied for by cash
or by instalments extending over a period not exceeding twenty years.
(3) Each application shall contain
an undertaking by the applicant that he will use any wire netting supplied to
him, within twelve months of its receipt by him, and will not use that netting
except in the erection, upon land owned or occupied by him, of rabbit‑proof
or dog‑proof fences as approved by the State Minister or a person thereto
authorized in writing by the State Minister.
(4) Each applicant shall state
whether or not he desires his holding to be grouped for the purposes of this
Part with any other adjoining holdings, and if so he shall state the names of
the owners, and full particulars, of those holdings and the length of so much
of the boundary of his own holding as forms part of the outside boundary of the
group.
Action by
Minister upon applications.
8. (1) The Minister, upon the receipt by him from a
State Minister of an application in pursuance of this Part may—
(a) grant the application in
whole or in part, and either with or without conditions;
(b) refuse the application; or
(c) refer theapplication back to
the State Minister with a request for further information.
(2) Where an application is granted in part only, or
subject to conditions, no further action thereon shall be taken until the
applicant has been notified ofthe
fact and has signified in writing his agreement therewith.
Minister to consider
recommendations.
9. In dealing with any application under this Part the
Minister may, in arriving at his decision, have regard to any recommendation or
other views attached to, or indorsed on, the application by the State Minister,
or by any person thereto authorized in writing by the State Minister.
Grouping of holdings.
10. Where a number of holdings adjoin one another and an
application under this Part has been made by the owner of each of those
holdings stating that he desires his holding to be grouped for the purposes of
this Part with the other adjoining holdings, the Minister may treat the
holdings as a group, and shall, subject to this Part, give preference to the
applications so made.
Security for payment.
11. Before supplying wire netting to a settler in
pursuance of this Part the State Minister shall obtain from the settler
adequate security for the payment by him of the cost of the wire netting and of
the freight and cartage thereof:
Provided that the Minister may in any case waive,
either wholly or in part, the necessity to obtain security in accordance with
this regulation.
Action upon grant of application.
12. Where the Minister grants an application in whole or
in part he shall forthwith advance to the State from which the application was
made a sum sufficient to purchase wire netting of the quantity and class
granted by him.
Price of wire netting supplied.
13. The price upon which the calculation of the amount of
any sum advanced under the last preceding regulation shall be based, shall be
free on board or free on rail at the capital city of the State from which the
application was made, and shall be at such rate as the State Minister certified
is the current rate payable by the State Government for wire netting of the
class in respect of which the advance is made.
Freight and cartage.
14. Freight and cartage within a State of wire netting
supplied in pursuance of this Part shall be paid by the applicant.
Maximum quantity supplied to any
settler.
15. The maximum quantity of wire netting which may be
supplied to a settler in any one year shall not, except with the consent of the
Minister, exceed 5 miles.
No interest to be charged
16. No interest shall be charged by the Commonwealth or
State Government in respect of moneys due or becoming due by a settler as
payment for wire netting supplied to him under this Part.
Payment for netting supplied.
17. (1) Each settler who has been
supplied with wire netting under this Part shall make payment therefor to the
State Minister, or to a person appointed in that behalf by the State Minister,
either by cash or by instalments as specified in his application and approved
by the Minister.
(2) All amounts received under this
regulation shall forthwith be transmitted to the Minister.
Charges by State Government
18. The Government of a State shall be entitled to charge
settlers a fee at a rate not exceeding £1 per mile of the wire netting supplied
to them under this Part.
Failure to comply with obligations
in espect of application.
19. Where any
person to whom wire netting has been supplied under these Regulations—
(a)fails to pay the purchase money or any instalment of the purchase
money at the time approved by the Minister;
(b)fails to comply with the undertaking given by him in pursuance of sub‑regulation
(3) of regulation 7 of these Regulations;
(c)is shown to have knowingly made an incorrect statement in his
application; or
(d)fails to observe any condition imposed by the Minister in granting his
application;
the balance of the purchase money of the wire netting
supplied to that person shall forthwith become a debt due and owing to the State
and may be recovered in any Court of competent jurisdiction, by the State
Minister, or a person thereto authorized in writing by the State Minister.
Part III.—Advances
in the northern Territory.
Definitions.
20. In this Part, unless the contrary intention appears—
“The Board” means the Classification Board appointed under the Crown
Lands Ordinance 1912‑1923 of the Territory;
“the Minister” means the Minister for the time being controlling the
Territory;
“the Territory” means the Northern Territory of the Commonwealth of
Australia.
Application for wire netting.
21. Any settler who desires to be supplied, under the
Act, with wire netting may make an application therefor to the Minister.
Particulars of applications.
22. (1) Each application under this
Part shall state the full name and address of the applicant, the quantity,
mesh, gauge and width of the wire netting required, the proposed terms of
payment, and where payment is not to be made in cash, the security offered for
payment.
(2) No application shall be granted unless it contains
an undertaking by the applicant that he will before being supplied with wire
netting in accordance with the application execute an agreement:—
(a) to pay for the wire
netting applied for by cash or by instalments extending over a period of not
exceeding twenty years from the first day of July in the year in which the
advance is made to that applicant, and
(b) to use any wire netting
supplied to him, within twelve months after its receipt by him, or such further
time as the Minister approves, and not to use that wire netting except in the
erection upon land occupied by him of rabbit‑proof or dog‑proof
fences as approved by the Board.
Reference of applications to Board.
23. The Minister shall refer all applications received by
him under this Part to the Board for consideration and report.
24. The Minister, upon receipt by him of the report of the
Board upon any application under this Part, may—
(a) grant the application in
whole or in part and either with or without conditions;
(b) refuse the application; or
(c) refer the application back
to the Board for further information.
(2) Where an application is granted in part only or
subject to conditions, no further action thereon shall be taken until the
applicant has been notified of the fact and has signified in writing his
agreement therewith.
Fences.
25. (1) It shall be a condition of the
grant of any application under this Part that, so long as any portion of the
purchase money for wire netting supplied in pursuance of the application
remains unpaid by the applicant, he shall keep the fences constructed of that
wire netting in good repair to the satisfaction of the Board.
(2) If the Board reports to the
Minister that a settler who has been supplied with wire netting under this Part
fails to keep his fences in good repair in accordance with this regulation the
balance of purchase money remaining unpaid by that settler upon the wire
netting shall forthwith become a debt due and owing to the Minister and shall
be recoverable in any Court of competent jurisdiction.
Supply of and payment for wire
netting.
26. (1) Wire netting supplied in
pursuance of any application made under this Part shall be made available to
the applicant at the port or railway station nearest to his holding.
(2) The cost of the wire netting supplied under this
Part to a settler, including all freight and handling charges to the port or
station referred to in the last preceding sub‑regulation shall be
repayable by the settler
to the Minister free of interest by not more than
twenty equal yearly instalments extending over a period not exceeding twenty
years from the first day of July in the year in which the advance is made.
(3) The instalments shall be recoverable
as rent in arrear under the lease of the land held by the settler.
Wrongful use of netting.
27. Any settler to whom wire netting has
been supplied under the Part who uses that wire netting otherwise than for the
purpose and in the manner provided in sub‑regulation (2) (b) of
regulation 22 of these Regulations shall be guilty of an offence.
Penalty: One hundred pounds or imprisonment for twelve
months, or both.
Credit on boundary fences.
28. Any settler who has been supplied under this Part with
wire netting shall, until the total cost of the wire netting has been paid,
allow similar credit to any person from whom he is entitled to receive portion
of the cost of the fence constructed of the wire netting.
Termination of leases.
29. If the lease of any settler who has been supplied with
wire netting under this Part terminates whilst any instalments on the wire
netting remain unpaid, the remaining instalments shall be payable at the
termination of the lease, unless the incoming tenant, if any, agrees to pay the
instalments.
Certain applications not to be
considered.
30. No, application under this Part shall be considered if
the land leased by the applicant is unimproved or if any rent on that land is
overdue, or if the land will not in the opinion of the Board, be substantially
benefited by the erection of vermin‑proof fencing.
Payment of instalments,
31. (1) The first instalment of the
cost of the wire netting supplied to a settler together with freight and
handling charges shall be payable on the first day of July in any year approved
by the Minister, but not later than the third year after the year in which the
advance is made, and thereafter an instalment of such cost shall be payable on
the first day of July in each succeeding year so that the full amount of such
cost is paid within twenty years from the first day of July in the year in
which the advance is made.
(2) Payment of instalments shall be
made either at the Lands Office, Darwin, or at the Department of Home and
Territories, Melbourne, and shall be paid to revenue and credited as re‑payments
on advances under the Act.
Registration of agreements.
32. Any agreement made in respect of any advance under
this Part shall be registered in the General Registry Office of the Northern
Territory within three months from the date of the execution of the agreement
by the Minister, and a reference to any agreement so made shall be indorsed on
the lease affected by the agreement, and the rent of the lease shall be
increased by the amount of yearly instalments payable in respect of any advance
made under this Part until the total amount of the advance has been repaid.
Printed and Published for the Government
of the Commonwealth of Australia by Albert J. Mullett,
Government Printer for the State of Victoria.